


Riposte

by darkesky



Series: Duality [6]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe - Twins, Episode: s02 Riposte, F/M, Miraculous Ladybug PV
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-20
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:21:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24288826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkesky/pseuds/darkesky
Summary: “Hey! You!”D’Argencourt looks away from his newbie. “Oui?”“I wanna join your team,” she insists. He recognizes the cadence, not quite well enough to pinpoint, but the voice washes over him in its familiarity. The mask muffles certain aspects…The idea strikes him, and he stiffens. What if it’s Ladybug?The fencing instructor scoffs before pausing, face starting to light up. He turns to the figures he knows to be Alix and Kim despite their best attempts to hide it. “I think we just found who will duel Adrien for the final spot on the team.”---In which fencing tryouts and duels prove more than just skills (and nobody in Paris is safe)
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Kagami Tsurugi, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Series: Duality [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1555636
Kudos: 29





	Riposte

**Author's Note:**

  * For [timerise](https://archiveofourown.org/users/timerise/gifts).



> riposte was a rewrite, and it was a TON of fun to write again with all the series changes. I hope you guys all enjoy that, but that said, the next chapter is kicking my ASS so... hopefully, it will still be a Wednesday update

As Duusu starts to dwell on memories of the past, something crashes into him. He jolts upright, his feathers sprawling across Felix’s face. As his Wielder grumbles, swatting at him, he scoots away and holds his breath. The feeling sweeps through the air, reaching for his heart and reviving him… Wiping away any doubt. Just as some people never forget a face, a kwami never forgets its holders.

Glancing around the darkened room, he tries to find Plagg. Beside him, Felix goes back to an easy sleep. Without Duusu’s presence next to his cheek, he tugs up the blankets to block out the light from the computer screen. Adrien sits at their computer, blue light illuminating all the dark shadows written there. Plagg sits on his shoulder, making no attempt to force the boy to fall asleep. 

He waits until Plagg starts talking. Then, Duusu darts out one of the  _ many  _ open windows. Whispering a  _ Pathfinder  _ to himself, he lets the golden trail stretch out from him to a familiar car. When he finally spots it, he resists the urge to scream with joy. 

She always knew how to travel in style! While Felix takes up his obsession with looking perfect with great reluctance, she accepted it with a sense of honor and duty. If she didn’t look stunning, then she  _ shamed  _ the name of the Peacock Miraculous… She went by Hera back then. He can’t imagine she prefers the name  _ Le Paon  _ to Hera either.

Sneaking through a cracked window, he lands on the seats of the red sports car. Glancing up, he beams. “Katsumi! You’re back!”

“Duusu?” The woman straightens, jarring the sleeping figure on her shoulder. With a quiet swear, she moves the carbon copy of her to the side. Duusu watches with wide eyes; he remembers Kagami being as small as  _ he  _ was. Now, she’s full-sized! “I thought you were with that  _ boy  _ now. You cannot be here and betray his confidence like that… Not with my daughter right here.”

“So it is Kagami!” He tries to dive towards the teenager, but Katsumi reaches out and captures him in her palm. As he pouts at her, eyes going watery, she rolls her eyes. “But she’s so  _ big  _ now! Does she still remember me?”

She sighs slightly, reaching up to tug at her hair. Then, she pauses. From the last time he saw her, a young and single mother, her hair hung around her shoulders. Now, she cropped it boy-short in a pixie-cut, and her daughter sports a bob instead. “No. She was a child when you last saw her. Don’t pout; that’s what happens when a decade passes without contact, you silly bird.”

“Hey, you left  _ me.”  _ He swipes at one of the tears which escapes. “But Paris? Thought you never wanted to be in a big city.”

“I don’t.” With a gentle smile, she runs a finger over his feathers until he preens. “Fashion and drama… I don’t enjoy such frivolous details. But akumas have found Paris now… I didn’t know Papillion’s powers could cause such evil.”

“He goes by Hawkmoth now!”

“And you go by Le Paon.” She hums. “How did that arrangement come about?”

“Let’s just say… My Wielder got a little creative. As expected. We are animals of great beauty.” He puffs out his feathers, putting all colors on full display. “He isn’t one you’d expect—”

“Duusu,” Katsumi interrupts. When he stops talking, she levels with a long look. “I know it’s Felix Agreste.”

-

Since the arguments during filming, the class sits with an uneasy feeling in the air. One wrong word leads to another blowup, and more people get involved. Anyone’s feelings act as fair game. If Kim and Alix are arguing about their fencing tryouts, they can bring up Chloe or Adrien all they want. Most of the time, the segways barely make sense, but it riles everyone up well enough the class falls back into the oppressive silence.

Alya sits back at her desk, laptop balanced between her lap and desk. As she types away, nimble keystrokes, she continues to update the Ladyblog. Without Nino’s help to continue maintaining it, more and more of her time goes to trying to act as the sole admin. People grow creative in ways to avoid detection, but she still deletes a good majority of inappropriate topics. She keeps the negative posts, though. Contrary to popular opinion, she believes people can discuss both the positive and the negative aspects of the heroes. What they  _ can’t  _ do is shamelessly criticize and nitpick. 

Nino sits in front of her, leaning back in his chair with his headphones on. She debates tugging them off, forcing him into a conversation. It’ll just be another fight, though. At this point, Alya barely grasps what they’re arguing about. Her interviews? Her obsession with the Ladyblog? The fact every time Nino encounters an issue, he closes in on himself? His behavior during filming? The way they both tick each other with no regard for a middle ground? 

The last time they spoke, Marinette and Adrien both acted as mediators. By the end, Marinette excused herself to the bathroom to cry in frustration, and Adrien pretended his brother called him home. 

Marinette bursts into the classroom, tripping over her feet and slamming into the floor. As she shifts, making sure not to crush her blue box, she groans as she makes contact. It draws Nino out of his daze, and he leans forward. “You alright there, ‘Nette? It’s been a while since you actually bit it that bad.”

“It’s fine, I’m used to it.” As she eases off the floor, she plops the box on the table. “And I didn’t even hurt the precious cargo! Bridgette told me to give you this!”

Sometimes, Alya really hates the way Nino fits into Marinette’s life. The two of them keep this history she can’t begin to touch. Nino knows almost every detail of her family; Alya knows about two things about Nino. He has a little brother named Chris, and he doesn’t like his parents very much. 

“Bridgette?” He drags his headphones down and raises an eyebrow. “You called  _ Bridgette.  _ In  _ America.  _ To ask what you should do about me.”

“To be fair,” Marinette sends a cautious look to Alya. Alya holds up a hand in mock surrender, and she smiles and presses on, “I texted her. And she keeps telling me she’s trying to change her sleep schedule for Paris a little early.” 

“Right! She’s coming at the end of the month, right?” Nino grins to himself.

Something swirls in Alya’s stomach. While Nino and Marinette bring up Bridgette frequently, like she’s somehow their third musketeer, she assumed she’d stay in California. Whose cousin goes to live with them? Yet again, they prove Alya doesn’t know anything about either of their families  _ (but she refuses to be jealous about that). _

Marinette nods. And then, she leans in to whisper to Nino, but it’s loud enough Alya can pick it up with some maneuvering. “Yeah! And she told me that she’ll wait to, uh, ‘kick your ass’ then because she doesn’t like the ‘self-pity’ when you get to be a supervillain and that’s very cool of you.”

“Well, you tell her it’s easy enough to get akumatized.” A bitter smile pulls at his face, but before he elaborates, he rips off the wrapping paper. Then, he lets out a hoot of laughter.  _ “This?” _

Alya peeks around them to see a picture of three children. Nino stands in the middle, a red cap pulled low over his ears. It’s the same one he wears now, but it’s too big, too clean, for him at the time. Around him, two girls stand with their arms draped around him. They look similar… She can tell which one is Marinette, she holds a gap-toothed smile and a teddy bear in her free arm, but the other one must be Bridgette. She looks more… She looks  _ freer  _ than Marinette with a bright smile where her eyes squinted almost shut.

“She thought you’d want a reminder of how badly we wanted to have superpowers back then.” Marinette winces. “It seems a little misguided, but… She means well?”

“I know she does. I’m shocked she’s thinking about me as she packs everything.” He runs a finger over Bridgette’s hair in the photo before grinning, shoving it back into the box to bring home later. 

Marinette nods. “Well, you guys  _ were  _ best friends.”

“ _ Are  _ best friends. We  _ are,”  _ Nino emphasises right as Adrien walks through the door.

He glances between the two of them and then at the photo. “Oh! Is that Bridgette?”

_ How the hell does Adrien know who Bridgette is at first glance? _

As Marinette ducks back to sit next to Alya, Nino launches into an explanation of Marinette’s cousin. Alya scowls and shoves away the prickly sensation running beneath her skin. Alya can’t win Nino back over with some simple photograph. She makes people look her in the eye, she speaks everything on her mind, but she can’t just… Turn on a switch and become sentimental and soft. The closest she can come is when they bonded during Stormy Weather’s attack, and now…

And now Nino won’t even talk to her. Not that she wants an asshole who won’t apologize to talk to her.

A hand lands on Alya’s, and she startles. Turning, she spots Marinette’s sympathetic smile. “Nino really likes you, I promise. He’s just sorting through some stuff. I think you guys… With a little more space, you can make up again!”

“And if I don’t want to?” Alya asks, lying through her teeth.

Nino seems to hear, turning around to stare at her for a split second. Then, he returns to Adrien, talking in low tones to make sure Alya can’t hear a word of it. She sighs and returns to her phone screen. The followers skyrocketed after the  _ Horrificator  _ (no offense to Chat Noir, but she did not intend to name the akuma  _ Sticky.  _ She named it after Nino’s monster film… Which she thought he would take as a compliment, but instead, he took it as an insult and proof she just wanted to use him). 

She sighs. “Mari, I don’t really know what we’re fighting about. He doesn’t like the attention the akuma gave him, but that’s not  _ my  _ fault. I know I could take down the details about the Bubbler, but he…”

“I see where you’re coming from,” Marinette says diplomatically. Then, she squeezes her hand. “I can’t tell you what to do, Alya. Obviously, try and do the most good for the most people, but you can’t satisfy everyone. And… And unlike you, I’m not a world-renowned journalist! Did you know Bridgette can’t shut up about the Ladyblog?”

“Your cousin follows it?” Sometimes, Alya consults the details about regions that follow her. Most of the time, though, she ends up focused on churning out new content and answering new questions. She started emailing someone who  _ might  _ be Chat Noir, or it might be a spam account, and she keeps badgering Ladybug every time she sees her in a desperate attempt to get some contact information.

Marinette brightens and nods. “Yeah! Apparently, there’s a huge fanbase for it down in California. She lives near Hollywood, though, so that might be  _ part  _ of it… But still! Superheroes are cool, and you have a good reporting style.”

“Most of the time, it’s livestreams of the events.” And sometimes, she filters through the posts people give her, lining them up to the timeline. Last akuma, though, only Alya recorded it in its entirety. Some people doubt whether the Horrificator really existed. If it only affected such a small branch of people, and it wasn’t even that threatening in the end, could she even qualify it as an akuma?

Alya says yes; Mylene would say yes.

Marinette shrugs. “I think there’s an art to that. I don’t think people would want to watch a livestream of me rambling about everything! You’re good at it, though, Alya! And you’ll sort things out with Nino because you’re  _ amazing.” _

“Thank you, Mari.” After squeezing her hand tightly, Alya pulls back. 

And then Miss Bustier sweeps in, just a little late as always, and starts class.

-

**MARINETTE + KIM**

**NINO + FELIX**

**ADRIEN + ALIX**

**MYLENE + ROSE**

**ALYA + MAX + CHLOE**

**JULEKA + IVAN**

**SABRINA + NATHANIEL**

Marinette watches Miss Bustier scrawl their names on the board, each screech making her flinch. In one hand, she keeps a sticky note balanced on her index finger to keep the groups organized. Instead of taking a multiple-choice test on  _ Beowulf  _ like the other classes, Miss Bustier decided to make projects…

And Marinette exists on creativity; she  _ thrives  _ on it. Sometimes, when she’s taking fifty question tests, her eyes swim until none of the words make sense, and Marinette gets this overwhelming desire to cry instead of doing her work.

While she  _ hoped  _ to get Adrien, Nino, or Alya, she likes Kim! The two of them are no longer as close as they used to be. Ever since he developed a crush on Chloe, he follows what she says without hesitation. It leads to some awkwardness considering Chloe considers Marinette the bane of her existence.

Miss Bustier steps away from the board, letting everyone take in the names. Chloe makes some sort of protest, and Alya bangs her head against the table. She watches Adrien swivel, and Alix finger-guns at him. At least those two are satisfied with their pairing… 

After observing their reactions, Miss Bustier claps. “I know some of you aren’t the  _ best  _ of friends, but this project will be fast. As a result, I will not be rearranging any of the pairings on the board, no matter what your reasoning is. It’ll be turned in at the beginning of class tomorrow,  _ but  _ I don’t want anyone to do this half-heartedly. I’d love to see your creative sides rather than your…  _ Desperately trying to interpret literature side.  _ So, I hope… No, I know we can all come out of this with new friends and a new side of ourselves we never would have thought we could bring out before!”

In front of her, Nino takes in a breath.  _ “Damn.” _

“Hey, he’s not that bad!” Adrien nudges Nino.

After staring at Adrien for a long moment, Nino flips around to face Marinette. With a forced smile, he clasps his hands together as if in prayer. “‘Nette, I love you, and I need you to teach me how to be nice to  _ everyone.  _ Like,  _ absolutely everyone.  _ Because I just got paired up with a human popsicle.”

“Hey!” Adrien slaps Nino’s arm, almost embarrassingly gentle. Nino thinks so judging by his raised eyebrow and barely suppressed laugh. “Stop doing that! My brother’s just as human as I am… Twins, remember?”

“Like I ever  _ could,”  _ groans Nino. As he picks up his bag, he makes a big show of packing up everything he has. Adrien watches for a few seconds before reaching out, grabbing his arm before he can go anywhere. “Uh, what?”

“Me and Fe should change seats. After all, we’re twins and share  _ everything.”  _ Adrien smirks before getting to his feet, grabbing his backpack. All of the buttons and pins jangle and click together.

As Felix walks down to his seat, he rolls his eyes. “We do not share everything. For example, I would never carry such garbage as a backpack.”

“It’s a good backpack,” Adrien pouts. Then, he offers his brother a salute before bouncing back towards Alix. The girl claims one of the last tables in the room since Rose stole her seat next to Mylene.

Nino groans. “This is like _The_ _Shining.”_

“Close your mouth, Nino, before you catch flies,” Felix says as he slides into the seat.

He grunts. “I don’t like you.”

Marinette chokes on her laughter. When Felix turns to give her a dirty look, she covers her face and slaps a hand over her mouth to keep from giggling at all. “Sorry! That was mean! I just… I’m gonna… I’m gonna go sit with my partner. Um, yeah. That sounds like a good idea. Good… Good luck? On the project?”

“Good save.” Alya snorts as Marinette flees.

When she reaches Kim, he smirks. As he wiggles his eyebrows in Adrien’s direction, he leans in close. “So… You know everyone in this class pretty well, right? That’s what Max tells me anyway.”

“Um… I think so… Maybe?” she stammers out. Right now, this conversation starts to outpace her, leaving her in a permanent state of whiplash… Which only adds to the surprise of Nino’s bluntness to Felix. She’d enjoy it if everyone could just slow down for one second… Then again, this  _ project  _ marks the perfect time to recover. Everyone needs to finish this with the tiny deadline Miss Bustier offered.

Kim nods. “And you’re a girl.”

“Yes?” That one, Marinette is confident about. Even though her voice wavers as if it’s more of a question. In front of her, she can see Rose and Mylene trying their hardest not to eavesdrop but failing anyway.

As subtly as possible (which is not very subtle at all), he gestures back at Chloe. “I couldn’t work up the courage to ask her out  _ last time.  _ But this time is, like, a  _ really big deal.  _ Max keeps running these statistical tests. And the probability of her saying yes… Grew? Escalated? He kinda lost me, but he said if I bought some expensive jewelry or something for Chloe, she’ll say yes!”

“Kim, you don’t need to do anything like that.” Marinette takes a deep breath, steeling her resolve, and places her hand on top of his. It reminds her of her interaction with Alya; maybe she does this too often. “You’re a great guy. If she can’t see that without something superficial like jewelry or knickknacks, then she doesn’t deserve you! Besides… Uh… I know a girl who’d say yes if you asked.”

“A girl who isn’t Chloe?” Kim asks dubiously. Then, he shakes his head. “No, you’re just saying that. You’re probably just trying to matchmake me.”

“I don’t… I’ve never… Matchmake?” Recoiling from him, she presses her hand against her chest and blinks several times. “I don’t do that! I don’t think so… I don’t… Maybe? No. No, I don’t.”

“Not to interrupt, but…” Mylene turns around and leans across the table. As she lowers her voice, her eyes fly over to Ivan. “She’s really good at matchmaking. Ivan told me she gave him advice about what to do after Stoneheart. And she gave  _ me  _ advice after last week as Horrificator and…”

Heat mounts in Marinette’s cheeks. Grabbing a stray piece of hair from her pigtails, she twirls it around her finger. If she ducks her head, she knows Kim would start laughing, and then  _ everyone  _ would start watching. Just because she gives advice to lovebirds doesn’t mean she matchmakes them! She never means to set them up. Some people just  _ match  _ each other. Their jagged edges fit with someone else’s. Mylene and Ivan, both shy and timid, can coax fire out of each other when it comes to protection. And Nino and Alya lure out moments of calm and find the eye of the storm, stopping their constant whirlwinds going on inside. And Marinette’s own life… With Adrien…  _ Ah! _

_ “But,”  _ Kim continues, “I think I’m going to try my chances with Chloe. Sorry to whoever this mystery girl is.”

At this point, Rose stops pretending she can go on without interrupting. Both of them gape at Kim, but Mylene finds her voice sooner. “Kim, are you sure you want to try and go out with Chloe?”

“Chloe isn’t that bad! I don’t know why everyone seems to think that!” he protests.

Marinette clears her throat. She tries her best not to look towards the back of the room. “You’re spending your money to buy her a present. I  _ promise  _ you you’re a catch to  _ other  _ people. You just need to keep your eyes open.” 

Mylene smiles, ducking her head in an attempt to catch Marinette’s eyes. When she fully focuses on the other girl, Mylene glances over at Alix. Marinette nods while Kim starts to argue with Rose. The girls of the class have a silent brain trust, one Alya hasn’t received a chance to join quite yet. They keep their finger on the pulse of every issue, though, since the guys can’t seem to join together.

Miss Bustier clears her throat. “Are you four working on your project?”

“Yes, Miss Bustier!” Marinette says, drawing Kim’s attention back to her. She fishes out her sketchpad and clears her throat. “So, anyway, I was thinking…”

-

His brother tends to attract strays.

The first time Felix told Adrien that, Adrien looked like he would start choking on his dinner. Nathalie reprimanded him before Gabriel choked out a laugh, agreeing. Everyone Adrien grows close to needs emotional support; from Chloe to Nino, Adrien dedicates most of his time finding ways to pick them up. When Felix asks if they return the favor, Adrien stares at him with puppy-dog eyes and insists every friendship was equal. 

_ (‘If anything,’ he would say, ‘they’re too good for me!’) _

Felix tries to find a reason why he would think that of Nino. Throughout class, whenever they tried to work on the project, it dissolved. Neither of them could agree on what to do. Their talents in media applied in specific areas, areas that did not happen to intersect. Since they both need to get it done, they hang around after school.

He settles at the table which belongs to him and Nathaniel. The redhead got paired with someone who could hold up their end of the bargain though. He doesn’t have to stay after with Nino, who seems to be spending most of his time moping; Nino doesn’t even  _ attempt  _ to work on this project.

“You’re just lucky I have to wait for Adrien to finish fencing tryouts,” Felix grumbles as he starts to spread out all of their brainstormings from class. Across the table, the brunet raises an eyebrow in silent judgment.  _ “What?” _

“Just wondering how such an ice king could be twins with a legit ray of sunshine,” Nino drawls. From his bag, he takes out their poster paper. As he starts to unroll it, Felix tapes down the edges to make sure it won’t curl back up as they work. Its scales glisten with words from Beowulf, and its eyes, the shadow of Beowulf glints. It only took some… Creative direction from both Nathaniel and Marinette.

The blond rolls his eyes. “Look, you haven’t even known my brother that long. On a bad day, nobody would consider him a ray of sunshine.”

“What? Is he also a death ray?” The other boy snorts as he scoops up one of the colored pencils the library loans out to everyone. As he begins to add the finishing touches to the scales, he makes a point to roll his eyes again. “I find it hard to believe that boy  _ has  _ bad days. He’s running on, like, two hours of sleep at all times. If that doesn’t make him a little grumpy, then what will?”

_ Two hours…? _

No, Felix will not let Nino catch him off guard. Ever since they started attending school, debuted as superheroes, Adrien’s sleep schedule went out the window. Felix couldn’t even complain considering he stayed up every other night trying to get his internship in order; staying after school will put him a day behind schedule. “Shut up. I have more experience with Adrien than you’ll ever get.”

“Aw, are you  _ jealous?”  _ Nino coos without looking up.

Felix bristles. “Excuse you—”

“Are you going to help, or am I doing this entire project by myself?” the boy grins lopsidedly. As Felix makes a face, Nino grabs a colored pencil and jabs it in his direction. Accepting it, he reminds him why they got paired up. Since Nino acts as a wild card, it makes sense Miss Bustier would want him to teach Nino how to be diligent, precise. She wouldn’t intentionally stir up conflict; Felix questions most of the pairings nonetheless. Did she intend to make new friends or new enemies?

The two of them work in silence, and Felix snaps the lead of the pencil three times. As he returns to his seat after sharpening it again, Nino clears his throat. “Look, dude, I don’t know your problem with me. But if this is some elitist bullshit, like, I will fight you. I’m not a poor person like Chloe thinks. I get my little apartment isn’t some kind of mansion or hotel like you guys have, but—” 

_ “But  _ nothing. How shallow do you think I am?” he interrupts. When Nino pauses in his speech, Felix groans. “You realize not everything relates to what recently happened to you, right? I don’t care if you become an akuma. I imagine, by the end of this school year, most of us will have been akumas.”

In his pocket, Duusu buzzes in surprise. No Miraculous Wielder can become akumatized. They would have to give up the Miraculous willingly to let a butterfly infect them. Otherwise, as Duusu explained to him, Nooroo’s powers would become unrivaled, impossible to balance with anyone else. The kwamis couldn’t do anything other than physically fight with each other; their magical abilities rarely worked. The only exception was Trixx, but she cast illusions  _ over  _ Wielders.

“I don’t care if you got upset. We’re teenagers. I expect all of us to get that upset over a wrong text message. And this isn’t some socio-economic clash between you and me. It’s not a struggle. Because if it  _ was  _ a struggle, I would have stopped Adrien from being your friend.”

Nino digests the words. His pencil stills over the poster paper. Then, he offers Felix a shit-eating grin. “Okay, so what you’re saying is you approve of me in some weird, inverse way?”

“That’s not the takeaway.” He tries to stop himself from banging his head against the table. He debates texting Nathaniel how miserable this entire meeting goes, but he doesn’t want some positivity about how  _ ‘Nino is actually really great, give him a chance!’  _ “I will never approve of you.”

“Mhm,” he hums, obviously not paying attention. His grin gives away his lack of attention.

Felix almost grabs the pencil out of Nino’s hand but stops. “I don’t approve of you because you’re some poor person, contrary to what you believed. It’s because you’re loud, obnoxious, and act as the  _ epitome  _ of being a teenager. And believe it or not, I’m not very fond of the dramatics which comes with being a teenager. As a result, I will never become akumatized like the rest of you.”

Duusu laughs.

“You’re a teenager though,” counters Nino. “Adrien told me enough about you to know you’re not as above this as you think. You’re just an asshole.”

“Excuse you?”

“You’re excused,” he continues cheerfully. “But, you know, it’s fine. It’s almost a positive quality. Wearing your assholery—”

“That’s not a word.”

“It is now! Anyway, wearing that on your sleeve is a perk. Some people are surprise asses. Like, if Adrien was a surprise asshole, I’d have to punch him out… No offense to Adrien. But if anyone wants to be your friend, they know what they’re signing up for. It’s almost a bonus.” Nino shrugs. 

“Thanks,” Felix drawls.

Nino smiles. “No problem.”

“But I think it’s worth mentioning you tend to open by being an  _ asshole  _ too.” Crossing his arms, he flicks one of the colored pencils at Nino. He catches it easily. “From what Adrien told me about  _ you,  _ you were rude and cruel to him the very first day he sat next to you. Why? Because he was childhood friends with Chloe? That seems like an asshole move.”

“I’m not disagreeing—” 

“So if Marinette turned out to be a bitch—” He pauses when Nino looks ready to throw a punch. He scowls down at the boy’s fist. “Put that away, I’m not actually calling her a bitch. She doesn’t deserve that. I’m proposing a hypothetical to you; do you know what a hypothetical is? If Marinette turned out to be a bitch, would you want  _ us  _ to ignore you and treat you like shit? Because you were childhood friends?”

Considering the words, Nino lapses into silence as he returns to the project. Right as Felix starts up again, content with flustering the other boy, he clears his throat. “Touche, Felix. Touche.”

-

After she observes for five minutes, Alix picks who will join the team. The others will fail and go home crying, somehow convinced the tryouts would end positively with next to no experience. While their fencing team might not go far in tournaments, they pick the elite. Having a huge squadron of weak fencers versus a small group full of close-to-strong fencers? Why would anyone pick anything else?

As per tradition, the returning team arrives earlier than anyone trying out. That way, none of the newbies will be able to pick them out amongst the seat of masks. The new kids keep flipping them up, panting and sweating from the heat clustered so close to their faces. They all stick it out. This year, though, only four of them return, and two spots remain open on varsity. Ondine and Alix for girls. Kim and a senior for boys. And every spot of junior varsity, all six of them, will be open to making sure someone could rotate in should the need arise.

When D’Argencourt announces basics, Alix slides over and stomps on Kim’s foot. He hops and cradles it, yelping. “What the f— _ frick?” _

“I call blondie!” Dodging around him, she manages to escape his hand reaching for the back of her uniform. He mutters something under his breath, cursing her out just soft enough D’Argencourt won’t say anything. 

When it boils down to it, she won’t need to walk through Adrien all the basics. After warming up, the two of them can launch into an actual fight! That’ll serve as his warmup before he  _ dominates  _ in the little… Competition. The tradition. 

Besides, Ondine chose Marinette already because she  _ adores  _ newbies. 

Even with Kim trying to recover, she gets there first and taps his shoulder. “You’re with me!”

“‘Course, Alix!” He finishes his sketch and pops up, offering a huge smile. She groans at him, reaching up to flick his mask down. Elsewhere, Marinette perks up at the idea of having another ‘ally’ here. However, they stand on a  _ battlefield  _ during a  _ war.  _ While they might be friends within the classroom, here, Alix has no intention to continue that friendship. Not until tryouts end. This year, they’re going to have a team that can  _ win. _

She glances over at the instructor before levelling her gaze upon Adrien. “Warm-up. Fast.”

“Okay…?” He starts to run through the gauntlet, and she goes through some of her own. D’Argencourt passes by them and makes a clicking noise underneath his breath. Alix scowls. When they practice, he  _ insists  _ Alix runs through the motions, too eager to get to the actual fight. He believes in getting in the right mindset and all that, and Alix couldn’t care less. She just wants to  _ fight. _

After Adrien stops, she levels a gaze on him even though she knows he can’t see the intensity there. “We’re skipping through the basics. We practiced with you every possible day. So, if you don’t know them, you’re a disappointment.”

“I know the basics,” Adrien confirms with a huge grin. She will smack that off his face.

Shaking out her arms, she takes one last second before lunging straight at Adrien. He counters without hesitation, and the din of the crowd fades from the field of her vision. At this moment, all that lasts is her and Adrien and the sabres. With each blow, he starts to dance with her. His nimble movements send him flying in a way different than Kim or Ondine. All of them rely more on strength than  _ this.  _

As Adrien deflects every single attack, he shifts from a more defensive stance to the offensive. Ready to make his strike, Adrien maneuvers his momentum to leap forward. Alix lets out a grunt of frustration as she tries to block and deflect it. Yet, the sabre taps against her torso. Right as she readies for another battle (one thing nobody else has on the team was Alix’s impressive stamina), D’Argencourt sweeps by.

He glances at them. “Monsieur Agreste!”

Knowing him, he will make this a full conversation when nobody else wants that. Alix growls beneath her breath, stepping back and shaking out her hands. Sweat already gathers as a second skin, and she smiles at the thought. It shouldn’t make her as happy as it does. But… The sweat proves she’s  _ alive,  _ proves Adrien will lead them to victory with how hard, how fast he fights.

Adrien pushes up his helmet, and she spots the same dizzy delight sprawled across his features. His smile grows big, almost infectious, revealing all of his teeth.  _ That  _ one never makes the cut on any of his posters. “Yes, sir?”

“I see you already have experience fencing.” D’Argencourt hums before turning to Alix, inspecting the flat surface of her helmet. She rolls her eyes, knowing he can’t detect it… But she knows what question he’ll ask regardless. “Is he the one, Alix?”

“He is  _ definitely  _ the one!” Alix bounces on her heels, painting the next scenario in her head. Usually, the competition goes one of two ways. While she couldn’t attend tryouts before, all of the seniors attest to this. One: one of the opponents  _ decimates  _ the other. Watching the heat of their fire burn out their competitor provides a unique rush considering D’Argencourt keeps the team balanced. Two: they’re equal skill level—hopefully, a  _ good  _ skill level.

As D’Argencourt walks away, Adrien turns to her with his big, green eyes.  _ “‘The one?’  _ Alix, are you planning to murder me?”

“Nah.” Alix glances amongst all of the newbies training, some of them matched up against each other. As she already  _ knew,  _ none of these people qualify for the fencing team… Maybe Marinette because they need a third girl to their team roster. However, all of the boys should resign themselves for junior varsity or bow out now. While the competition acts as an equal opportunity, Adrien won. All of those fencing videos of him… They don’t do him enough credit for how good he’s grown. “You’re better than whoever he can choose.”

Adrien smiles. “What? I don’t… Am I missing something?”

“You’ll get it soon enough.” She gets on her tippy-toes, reaching over to push down his helmet. He snorts underneath, and she smirks. “C’mon. They’re not done training the newbies, and I want a rematch.”

-

Out of all his responsibilities (barring Chat Noir now), Adrien adores fencing. Gabriel let him do it because of the prestige it brings; one of his old friends became a renowned fencer and opened her own studio. He glanced down at Adrien and smirked, though. While Adrien couldn’t handle running a studio, Gabriel still believed fencing would bring enough fame.

Sometimes, he wishes he could recapture the feeling of fencing for the first time. For once, he pulled ahead of Felix. When the two of them started training against each other, his father critiquing in the back of the room with Nathalie pretending she wasn’t watching, Adrien started winning more and more… But it wasn’t about winning. It was about the  _ rush of the fight;  _ even if he failed, he could walk away more excited than he began. He felt  _ alive. _

As Alix relinquishes him, panting, he crosses the courtyard. D’Argencourt starts to pair up the newbies to duel before whatever the final bout will be. While he knows none of the others trying out, he can spot Marinette. She pushed up her helmet and started fanning herself with her free hand, the other going white on the sabre.

She looks so flustered; it’s a little adorable.

“Already got a partner?” Adrien asks when he reaches her, unable to hide the breathless joy still sweeping through his voice. She startles and turns to him, a bright blush on her face. As she starts to spin the sabre in her hand, surprisingly fluid, she searches for the words.

Finally, she finds her voice. “Yeah, I thought Adrien would be here… He’s been excited about this for  _ weeks,  _ you know? Well, no, you wouldn’t know. He’s… Uh… About  _ this tall…  _ And blond and nice and super, super handsome, and he’s the only reason I even thought I should attempt to try out.”

It takes a second for Adrien to recover, pushing away his blush. He knows how to control his composure enough, though, and he settles on a smile. As he pushes up his helmet, he resists the urge to laugh at the way Marinette’s jaw drops. While she starts to stammer out an apology, Adrien dismisses it easily. “Thanks for the compliments!”

“You’re, uh, welcome?” she laughs and fiddles with her pigtail. “Though, if I made you uncomfortable—”

“Nope!” None of the compliments even veer towards being uncomfortable. Considering the entire class knows he models, the amount of teasing he gets for being handsome is a little… Strange. Unbearable? Alya frequently comments on how hot he is, platonically considering how close she continues to grow with Nino despite their week-long fight, and Marinette probably picked up on it. “I’m glad I convinced you to give fencing a try!”

“Well, yeah! I thought, like, nice to fencing… Wait. It’s nice to try something new, and I’ve been watching a lot of YouTube lately… Not that you care. And Chat Noir… Well, Alya posted something analyzing his fencing technique…” Marinette buries her face in her hands after she finishes. 

Adrien pauses. “Oh, I didn’t know we put that up yet! I helped Alya with it.”

“Did you?” She fumbles with her helmet, pushing it over her bright red blush. Then, she shuffles into a  _ passable  _ position. “We should, uh, probably get to it.”

He cocks his head, biting his tongue. “Bend your knees.”

“Like this?” As she compiles, he grins.

“Yeah! Exactly! Okay, now stretch your left foot back. Turn it outwards… Yeah! Perfect!” He’d high-five her, but he doesn’t want to ruin her stance now. Yet, with the compliment, she straightens. 

Getting behind her, he reaches and urges her forward. His hand drifts to hers, guiding her sabre and adjusting how she grips it. A warm sensation floods over his body, sunshine crashing into his bones for the first time. He takes a second to savor the sensation. Marinette  _ glows  _ against him as she giggles, and a feeling of bliss escapes into the open air. 

After he realizes they’ve been holding hands for a decent amount of time, he lets out a shaky breath. “Put your sabre forward like this.”

He backs up to her opposing side, greeting her as a fencer. At that moment, he decides to let her have the first move. Sliding into position, he waits… And waits… But Marinette doesn’t move.

Flipping up his helmet, he remembers what Felix told him once. The mask freaked Felix out, probably still does. Seeing a flat surface instead of someone’s face… It takes away the feeling of fighting with a human being. It takes away that level of assurance. Adrien might not be smart enough to understand an internship with his father, but he can help with fencing. “Go on, Mari. Don’t worry about being too harsh! I know the whole sword thing can be intimidating, but it won’t hurt, and you’re  _ supposed  _ to touch me.”

“Mari?” she whispers to herself. Then, she nods. “Okay, I’ve got this.”

She barely gives him time to slide back into position before she leaps forward. As they come to blows, he lunges at her. Marinette being an  _ offensive  _ fencer… Huh. He never would have thought… And her reflexes? Even against Alix, who works hard to hone them, she sharpened hers beyond compare.

As they stop to catch their breath, he stares at her. “I want your reflexes!”

Instead of saying anything, Marinette pushes up her helmet to offer a confident, flirty smile. He blinks, taking in the image. Her bright blue eyes, the sweat glistening off her, the way she doesn’t hesitate… He never saw Marinette like this before. 

He wants to lure it out more.

As he goes for Marinette, she blocks him and strikes him in the chest.

Adrien steps back. “Attack, parry, riposte, counterattack… The point is yours!”

“But… You hit me first?”

He  _ loves  _ this, this golden moment. He wants to take it out of time and carry it with him, reminding him any time he lapses back into useless, reckless, less-than. Adrien never acts as the teacher; he’s the  _ student.  _ Alix and Kim train him. He might be his father’s son, but he’s not the intern Felix is, and he’s not even close to being as good as Felix is. They’re not equals… Felix sets this golden example of a son, and Adrien struggles to keep up. Nino and Alya tuck him under their wing because he knows  _ nothing— _ not the social structure of school or the physical structure.

But he knows this. Chat and Adrien overlap here in fencing. Serious fencers exist more often than casual, light-hearted ones; he just insists being friendly lets him be a good sport. He’ll never be as bold as Chat here, but he gets closer than ever.

And if Chat is who he truly is, then if someone likes Fencer Adrien, then they like Real Adrien. He doesn’t get to share this with a lot of people. Felix thinks fencing is a waste of time, his father stopped showing up for the meets a long time ago, and when he showed the videos to Nino, he thinks the other boy fell asleep.

Adrien gets to share it with Marinette though. Sweet, charming Marinette who never fails in being real, in being passionate. Every way Adrien fails, she shines and succeeds. He never sees her fail.

“With sabre fencing, the attack doesn’t necessarily win the point even though you might touch the opponent first. You took the initiative this round, so we say that you had priority. I can only parry or riposte, so I lost.” He beams beneath the mask.

Marinette hums, and he knows she doesn’t quite get it. He can help her out later! Father might even let her over to his house if he gets to train her. 

She settles on a question. “But everything happens so  _ fast.  _ How can you know who won the point?”

“Well, you don’t get to, always. In other sports, the points are right there… But here, it’s a little harder. So, the ref can abstain if he can’t understand the point. Shall we continue?” He tries to hide his excitement, but he  _ knows  _ he’ll be in their garden tonight, doing gymnastics until someone scolds him.

“I’d love—”

“Hey! You!”

Someone new shouts out, louder than anyone else in the room. Marinette startles and falls into Adrien, and he catches her. Neither of them moves as they stare at the scoring box. He sucks in a breath, stunned, and Marinette lets out a nervous giggle at his side. 

The figure stands atop the scoring box, the picture of dignity and pride. Her stance, the way she carries herself, speaks levels of her confidence and her status. She wears a different sort of fencing gear; her red garb pops in the sea of white. It makes her stick out… But in a positive way. Even her sword has the same red…

It reminds him of Ladybug, and his heart sings.

D’Argencourt looks away from the newbie. “Oui?”

“I wanna join your team,” she insists. He recognizes the cadence, not quite well enough to pinpoint, but the voice washes over him in its familiarity. The mask muffles certain aspects…

The idea strikes him, and he stiffens.  _ What if it’s Ladybug? _

The fencing instructor scoffs before pausing, face starting to light up. He turns to the figures he  _ knows  _ to be Alix and Kim despite their best attempts to hide it. “I think we just found who will duel Adrien for the final spot on the team.”

-

After a few moments, the two fencers finish getting ready for the match. With the wires trailing into the scorebox, both of them squirm. The mystery figure shifts from foot to foot while she swings her sword  _ (sabre?)  _ about. Adrien stretches as he bends the blade against the ground, watching it snap back into place.

Marinette glances down at the ground and sighs. If she guessed right, both Kim and Alix flank her. Considering both of them made it clear they’d keep an eye on her today, they could find her within a moment. Marinette was the only girl trying out… Well, other than the mystery fencer. “Of course there’s a mystery girl coming out of nowhere. My reflexes mean…  _ Ugh.  _ She’s better than anyone here.”

“Says  _ who?”  _ snorts the boy. He jostles her with his shoulder, but he doesn’t tear his gaze away from the brewing fight. “Just because Adrien’s had private practice doesn’t make him the  _ best  _ here. And she… Who even knows this chick? Whoever wins this match wins the competition, and I’d put my money on blondie.”

“That’s a load of bullshit,” Alix adds.

Marinette turns to face her. “What?”

“They can’t even compete against each other. Fencing isn’t a co-ed sport!” Throwing her hands up, Alix moves to scan through the crowd. “I can’t believe people are dumb enough to get swept in this. And anyway, D’Argencourt has this little competition every year. He chooses the most promising, and then whoever wins gets a spot… But if they’re both  _ good,  _ they’ll make the team. And we have a perfect spot for her. No offense, Marinette.”

“All of it taken, Alix,” Marinette teases back. Then again, when she first brought up her intention to try out, Alix broke out laughing. She never expressed an interest before; a crush on Adrien shouldn’t warrant a spot. Marinette went red and insisted it wasn’t that. And it  _ wasn’t  _ that. After watching Chat be able to complete every physical task better than Ladybug and Le Paon, she wanted to pull her weight. Sure, she might be the tactician, the strategist, of the team, but it didn’t mean she couldn’t be acrobatic. 

If she made the fencing team, though, it would take time away from her other commitments… And Bridgette would never let her live it down. Out of the two of them, Bridgette enjoys sports more. Marinette adores sewing and designing her own fashion… She likes jobs she can complete at her desk without leaving her room. Bridgette likes the jobs where you sweat and labor for the perfect product.

But  _ Adrien  _ fences, and every quiet moment she steals with him, she likes him a little more.

For the life of her, Marinette can’t remember falling in love deeper than with Adrien. Every sentence out of his mouth reveals a new side of him. He walks around with a mess of contradictions clinging to him. He’s confident but shy, humble but boastful, playful but rigid. His smile shifts like a kaleidoscope—bright, carefree, forced, scared, shy, insistent. When she attempts to read him, he shifts again… Learning him, learning how to like him, learning how to be a friend, is like riding a carousel. It never stops spinning, but eventually, the scenery should become familiar.

“Pret…” D’Argencourt waves his sword. “Allez!”

The two charge forward. At the same time, the point buzzers light up and screech, a strange reminder of the akuma alarms.

Deliberating, D’Argencourt calls a truce. She leans into Kim. “I thought Adrien touched her first?”

He hesitates. “Not sure.”

Alix lets out a quiet laugh before reaching around Marinette to swat at his shoulder. “Don’t listen to Kim. When it comes down to it, Kim can’t tell his ass from his face—”

“Hey!” 

“It’s okay, I struggle to tell the difference sometimes too.” Hooting beneath her helmet, she escapes his counterattack. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter what we think. We don’t question the ref’s decision.”

Before Marinette can respond, the sirens light up again. D’Argencourt looks between the two, moving his head fast enough it  _ must  _ give him whiplash. “Abstention!”

“What’s happening?” whispers Marinette.

Alix shrugs. “D’Argencourt doesn’t know who won… So he abstained. This could go on forever, not that I’m complaining—”

“Wait!” the mystery girl calls out, throwing out an arm to stop Adrien from lunging forward. He pivots and returns to the starting position, slumping slightly as he catches his breath. “I request we do it without the machine. The two of us would be most at ease. It will make it easier for the ref to reach a decision.”

“Adrien?” 

“‘Course.” Adrien disconnects the body cord and shakes out his body. At the same time, the girl lets hers fall to the ground, and she reaches for her sword. As she spins it easily, getting it into the starting position, Marinette gawks at the effortless grace coming off her in waves. Even as  _ Ladybug,  _ Marinette fails to project that much confidence.

Marinette nudges Kim again. “Wait, so now how will we know who touched the other first?”

“First of all, stop talking to Kim. Kim doesn’t understand this.” Alix shoves Marinette into Kim before cackling. Then, she grows sober and glances back at them. “The machines weren’t working anyway. We’ll just have to watch carefully.”

Adrien and the girl lunge at each other again, swords clashing and singing into the air. Without the machines’ restrictions, Marinette can detect the differences in styles of fighting. As Ladybug, she  _ needs  _ to predict patterns, and she tries to think of this as a training opportunity. The girl holds her blade delicately, moving with all the grace of a viper. She can dance around smoothly as if she floats above the ground… But it comes very rehearsed. While Adrien hits the ground harder, he combines a strange amount of acrobatics. He dodges and ducks, twisting around in knots. Since nobody says anything, they must be legal moves, but it catches the girl off-guard to see the blended style.

He’s willing to push back against the rules, and she follows suit.

To avoid the next strike, Adrien leaps around the post and off the scoring box. The girl charges ahead and jumps onto the steps. Now, she holds an opportunity Adrien doesn’t. It  _ has  _ to strike from above… She’ll ask Chat Noir about that on patrol tomorrow. His technique with his baton reflects more Adrien than the mystery fencer, but he violates  _ more  _ rules.

“That’s amazing,” whispers Marinette.

Alix and Kim nod. Then, Alix points at the girl. “She better win.”

“If Adrien doesn’t win,” Kim says, “I’m quitting.”

Alix snorts. “Wanna bet?”

As the herd floods to one side of the stairs, she flees to the other side to get a good view. Marinette isn’t tall enough to see over heads like Kim, and she isn’t bold enough to elbow people out of the way like Alix.

The girl pins Adrien against the railing. For a second, she assumes it must be the end.

Adrien calls out loud enough for everyone to hear. “That all you got?”

And the fight rages on.

-

He hears the crowd before he sees it. Nervous energy buzzes in the air just outside the library, and when Nino turns, he can see a group in white. He pauses before trying to get up to watch out the window. “What’s going on out there?”

“What’s going on is  _ you’re  _ getting distracted before we finish,” Felix spits out. He tosses a colored pencil at Nino’s face, and he swats it down to the floor before rolling his eyes.  _ Anything  _ would distract him from this project. In fact, he’d rather they go back to awkward silence than snippy comments. The air no longer pressed in on them as it did in class, but they would not be walking around as friends.

Nino takes a deep breath to steel himself before smirking. “Sorry, Elsa, thought we were almost done.”

_ “Mon Dieu,  _ if you’re equating me to some stupid princess in a Disney film…” the blond mutters under his breath. Then, he leans closer to the poster and continues writing the words in his calligraphy. Compared to Adrien’s blocky letters, he wonders how they learned to write. Shouldn’t identical twins have the same handwriting? Wouldn’t they hold the pencil the same way and apply the same force?

He’d ask, but Adrien would laugh in his face. That’s why he texted him the question instead.

As he eases back in the chair, he kicks Felix beneath the table, too gentle to make him angry. “I’m not equating you to a stupid princess. I’m equating you to a stupid  _ queen.  _ Fitting, right? She has ice powers and likes to isolate herself from the rest of the population.”

“Nino—”

The doors to the library fly open as a white figure staggers against them. He manages to hold his sabre out in time to prevent the red figure from striking again. Nino… Doesn’t understand fencing. Despite Adrien’s best efforts of showing him continuous YouTube videos all week, Nino used that time to take a micro-nap. He regrets that decision now, and he watches with wide eyes as the pair attack each other.

Wait… Felix probably knows how to fence. Before he can regret talking to the other boy, he leans over the poster. “Is that Adrien?”

“In white? Yeah,” Felix replies, a hint of exasperation starting to tangle within his voice. “I’ve seen too many of these matches… People need to put a restriction on how far Adrien can move. If they don’t use a scoring box, Adrien would walk all the way to  _ America  _ to keep his advantage.”

“And in the red?” he prompts. Everyone in the school wears white instead. This whole uniform makes the girl an outsider.

He shrugs. “No clue. I barely know the people in  _ our  _ class, much less the rest of the school.” 

The one in red knocks a book cart away, sending it careening into the doorway. Marinette, who just managed to enter, barely manages to leap out of the way before falling to the ground with a loud squeak. When they make eye contact, Nino breaks out laughing. Judging on the outfit, a little too big for Marinette and without a helmet, she tries out for the  _ fencing team.  _ He never thought Marinette would even attempt, but in a small way, he prays she can make it because the imagery of her fighting people away with a sword sends him into another fit of laughter.

It trickles away when the figure in red growls. “I am  _ done  _ with this.”

“Sorry,” Adrien chirps back, breathless as he backs her into a corner. 

She makes a noise in the back of her throat, and Nino can’t begin to decipher it. It catches Adrien off-guard, allowing her to get out from between the bookshelves. “Only be sorry when you are defeated.”

“Okay?” Adrien deflects one more blow, but something different resonates in their posture. The one in red intends to end this bout  _ now;  _ she won’t be playing games anymore. Sensing her resolve, Adrien shifts into something a little more professional, a little more like the fencers he praises relentlessly on YouTube.

Their swords strike at the same time.

Yanking off her helmet, the girl in red takes in Adrien. Her hair frizzes up all around her face, a mix of static and sweat. No emotion registers on her strict features as she sizes him up, and when Adrien returns the favor to show his own messy appearance, she scoffs before turning. Searching, she waits until she hones in on Marinette, the only one who wears fencing gear. “Well? Who got the first hit? Who struck first?”

D’Argencourt appears in the doorway, leaning heavily. All across his white uniform, Nino makes out dirty footprints. Nino wants to hear the story behind  _ that  _ one, but D’Argencourt still hates him for almost flunking out of his history class. Maybe Adrien can worm it out of him. The man pants, but he focuses on Marinette. “Who won?”

“Me?” she stammers, pressing a hand over her heart.

He nods. “I wasn’t here to referee. You have to choose this one, Marinette.”

“Oh, um…” Looking back and forth between the two of them, her face twists as she tries to figure it out. Nino thinks they hit at the same time, so when her gaze briefly skips to him, he shrugs. Besides, he knows nothing about fencing.

Felix mutters. “Katsumi Tsurugi’s daughter?”

“Who?” Spinning around, Nino tries to read his expression, but he ducks his head instead. Now, he starts to seek out his twin brother, but Adrien stares at the one in red without trying to hide his surprise.

D’Argencourt starts to speak again, and Marinette startles. “Adrien. I pick Adrien.”

Something deflates in the air as Marinette speaks, and the two fencers regard each other. Then, the figure in red offers her hand to Adrien, who reaches over and shakes it. When she starts to walk away, he tightens her grip and pulls her back to him. Felix leans forward in interest at his brother’s interest while the girl makes a quiet noise.

She nods. “Adrien Agreste.”

“I seem to be at a disadvantage,” Adrien says, tone a mix between formal and sly. “You know me, but I don’t know you.”

The girl offers a threadbare smile before it disappears. “I suppose that is a mystery you will have to find out for myself, Agreste.”

She wiggles her hand free and walks out of the room; Adrien stares at her. Nino whispers to Felix, who watches his brother with the same fascination. “Does your  _ wittle bwother  _ have a crush?”

“Apparently,” he whispers back, interest clear in his voice.

Marinette discusses something with Adrien and D’Argencourt, shoulders slumped and voice coming out weak. Right as Adrien pivots to chase after the girl, he pushes to his feet. As he breezes over Marinette, he pulls her back to wrap his arms around her shoulders. She slumps into him.

She sighs. “Adrien’s running after her to ask for a decisive match. He’s… He’s a good guy.”

“Perk up, ‘Nette,” Nino says as he pats her head. She makes a sound of protest, so he does it once more. “He’s not blind… He’ll come back to you.”

“But she—”

“But nothing. Let him have a fencer friend. He needs more of those.” Then, he guides her over to the table with Felix.

-

_ Shame. _

The word echoes in her head as she walks down the hallways. Her first day of school begins the following Monday, but with fencing tryouts on Friday, she  _ needed  _ to come today. Now, everyone’s eyes beat down upon her. She is a mystery, and she is a failure, so now she has become a zoo.

And she lost to  _ Adrien Agreste. _

Upon opening her new studio in Paris, her mother fights for him to join up. She wants a small studio on the bottom level of their house. After all, she does not intend to stay in Paris for very long. Something just called her here recently… Kagami suspects it to be Gabriel Agreste. Between the two of them, history blossoms out of sight. Her mother refuses to talk about it; her father leaves the room.

Almost at the car, she hears footsteps thundering behind her. She turns to see Adrien barreling towards her, eyes brighter than they have any right to be. His happiness shines out, almost painfully obvious, the thrill of the fight still coursing through his veins. “Wait up!”

Kagami opens the car door to toss the helmet onto the backseat. Then, she reaches up and starts shaking out her hair. When she returns home, she needs to look presentable. “Yes?”

“Oh!” He takes her in again before holding out her sabre. “You left this… I didn’t want you to… Well, here. It’s your sabre. No matter the old tradition…”

“We should respect the old tradition.” She laughs humorlessly. With your prized sabre, you should give it up to the first opponent who bests you with it. After all, it is meant to be an extension of your arm, and it failed you. Not many people prescribe to this; it might be between Gabriel and her mother. Her mother lost her sabre many years ago; she describes her opponent as a ‘real fox,’ and Kagami refuses to probe on that detail.

He balks at the words, and he thrusts at her again. “No. It’s  _ your  _ sabre. And that match barely counts—”

“No, Agreste, it’s yours.” She slips into the car and shuts the door, not giving him a chance to return it. Before thinking better of it, she rolls down the window to face the blond again. “My name is Kagami Tsurugi. I imagine your father will be seeking out my family soon enough.” 

“Kagami—”

Interrupting him, she rolls up the window and commands the driver to flee from the school. She wishes her mother picked her up; if Katsumi could drive, she  _ did.  _ However, she sorts out legalities about their living space. How could she interrupt something so important for her mother? And her father spends his time schmoozing with the mayor right now, trying to get a job despite the short notice.

She pulls out her phone to find a text from her mother. She wants a phone call, but… What is the point? Kagami  _ knows  _ her mother will be ashamed before feigning comfortable assurances. Reassurance means nothing considering it will come as her mother’s second reaction. Her first one, the genuine one, will be disappointment.

The girl leans against the window, relishing the cool feeling against her sweaty forehead.  _ This  _ should not have been the introduction she had to Paris. Back in her old school, Kagami went unrivaled. To lose  _ instantly…  _ It means she has gone soft without constant practice.

A butterfly bursts in through the window, landing upon her ring. As she moves to swat it away, something righteous starts to flood through her body. It pulses and rocks through her, the call of justice for something wronged. It pulls at her heart, pulls at her spirit, and she gasps at the opportunity it presents.

**_For her whole life, Kagami trained to be the best fencer. Her family will not hand anything to her. While she might come with some privilege, she earns everything she gets. Adrien Agreste appears to get everything from his father; it was her right to beat him. That girl, that new fencer, stole her chance._ **

A voice, smoother than honey, slides through her ears and oozes through her mind.  _ “Riposte, I am Hawkmoth. I can give you the opportunity to get back on top, to right the wrongs of incompetent students. All you have to do is get me two objects.” _

**_‘He had no right to allow that girl to judge. She had no right to choose not to abstain. Adrien had no right to win—sHe ShOuLd HaVe WoN. It WaS hEr ViCtOrY tO hAvE. sHe WiLl RiGhT tHe WrOnGs.’_ **

“On my honor,” Kagami says. Power swells up and pulses through her veins. She lifts an arm, and it converts into a sabre. As she reaches up, she slices through and cuts a new sunroof. The driver exclaims, but she ignores it as she clambers out.

**_IT WILL BE WORTH IT._ **

Paris belongs to her now. She soars through the sky, the air bending to her will. The world knows, the world  _ agrees  _ with her. With its aid, she will recover her victory. She will reach her own goals. It starts with Adrien Agreste who  _ must  _ wait for her. And if he does not, she will require it. He made her an offer, and while she refused it before, she was being silly. Childish. She had not thought ahead.

Now, she thinks ahead, and the world is hers to claim.

But sure enough, the blond stands in front of the school. He keeps his head down, talking to that damned girl, and he dances from foot to foot.

She lands down on the Earth, and she leans, pointing the tip of her blade at his throat. She nudges his chin up, forcing him to make eye contact. “I am taking you up on your offer of a decisive match.”

“I can’t fight you like this!” Agreste protests. She catches a hand gesture, catches him ushering the wannabe referee behind his back. “You’re not  _ yourself,  _ Kagami. It wouldn’t be fair for either of us.”

“My name is Riposte now.” Her gaze drifts to Marinette, and a smile crawls across her face. “But how about we raise the stakes?”

-

With every breath he takes, he feels the tip of the sabre slide. As he goes to slide his hand into a pocket, he pauses. Dressed in his fencing gear, he couldn’t find a way to keep Plagg on him. While the ring hangs around his neck on that leather band from his birthday, Plagg sits inside his backpack. Inside his locker.

Like this, he’s far from a hero. The flawed model with the schoolboy smile doesn’t come  _ close.  _ Little blond  _ Adrien Agreste  _ who causes akumas by not protesting his win, by insisting Kagami should have won because he  _ knew  _ she should have won, is not Chat Noir. 

Kagami— _ Riposte— _ pulls away from him for a moment, and he moves before he thinks. As he pulls at Marinette, he throws both of them into the bushes outside the school. Nearby, he knows he laid Kagami’s sword on the steps as he deliberated what to do—

_ Shit.  _

His ankle strikes hard against the root of a bush, pain starting to shoot up through his bones. Every move sends new daggers through him, and his thoughts ricochet in his skull in waves of panicked, pained yelps. But he grits his teeth and starts getting to his feet.

Marinette moves and catches his hand. He freezes without his primary support. “Adrien… Are you okay?”

“It’s probably just a sprain. Nothing… Cracked.” That might be a bit of a stretch, but Plagg once told him he healed fast in transformation. Even if his ankle  _ did  _ break, every hour as Chat Noir would be a day of healing. When she hesitates, unconvinced, he offers his widest smile. “I’m fine. Trust me, Mari… It’s my fight.”

He staggers to his feet, trying to keep his ankle elevated. Swooping down, he picks up the red sword she once gave to him. As he squares his shoulder and tries to recover, he adjusts his positioning. “Decisive match, right? No need to get Marinette involved, and… If I win, you hear me out, Kagami. And if I lose, I imagine you already have a plan.”

Something shifts on her face, just enough expression to break through the facade of the akuma. His heart stutters to a stop inside his chest, missing Plagg. As Riposte extends a proper greeting, Adrien struggles to follow pursuit. His ankle threatens to give out underneath him. 

Riposte lunges forward faster than humanly possible, and he  _ knows  _ he wouldn’t be able to beat her even at his peak. All he can do is swipe upwards, fending off her blows in this sloppy, unprofessional way… His father would be disappointed in this. His father would never let him live down how his training flies out the window in the time it matters most.

Something latches upon Riposte’s wrist just as she primes to stab straight through him. Narrowing his eyes, he spots the yo-yo string and lets out a wheezy laugh. The string tightens and yanks the akuma backwards, and she backpedals in an attempt to stay on his feet. As she lands hard against the ground, the akuma lets out a rapid-fire stream of swears. 

Adrien hops backwards, holding his foot above the ground. Already, sweat starts to collect on his forehead, and tears prick in his eyes. Chat Noir will be struggling all day long if this might be an indication.

The spotted heroine swoops in front of him, and a fresh wave of tears threaten to roll down. “Ladybug!”

“I saw what you did with that one girl, Marinette. It’s very noble of you to do so.” She extends her hand to him, and he accepts it. As he falls into her, he buries his face in her shoulder to hide the tears, to hide the blush. Of all ways he thought he’d end up in Ladybug’s arms, he didn’t think it’d be with a crushed ankle. “Oh… Okay. We need someplace private to have this conversation.”

“She’ll be back up soon,” he mumbles. Pushing away from her, he forces a bright smile as he gestures down at his ankle. “And it doesn’t look like I’m going to be much help.”

“Everyone has different strengths. I don’t need you to be strong right now… Besides, I bet Marinette thinks you’re plenty strong,” Ladybug cheerfully says, pulling him closer. Then, her arm dips down around his waist, and he knows his face goes redder. “Oh! Does your ankle hurt that badly?”

“Yes?” he manages to choke out. When they lurch into the air, he yelps as a hot sensation starts to blister on his ankle. As the wind beats against him from every angle, he bites down his lip to keep from blubbering out in pain. Even if Ladybug insists she can be the superhero right now, it would be embarrassing. He should be able to help out even as pathetic Adrien Agreste.

Still, he lets the world fade to the background, lets his subconscious start to disappear behind the folds. When he drifts on a haze of numbness instead of pain, he can focus on something else.  _ Anything  _ else. Otherwise, he’d ball up his fists and feel the fat tears fall over the way his skin burns.

If Plagg was here, he’d insist he needs to suck it up though.

When he opens his eyes again, he finds the neverending sky from some rooftop. Behind the chimney, he glances around. While he can’t figure out which building he sits against, he  _ knows  _ they’re high up. Ladybug crouches and offers a kind smile. “So, you and Marinette…?”

“Marinette?” Adrien takes a few seconds before smiling wide and shrugging. As he slumps back, he glances down at his swollen ankle; he debates yanking off the shoe. “She’s one of my closest friends. You know, you remind me of her… She might be a little more bashful, but she’s incredibly kind-hearted and an amazing person once you get to know her.”

Then, he closes his eyes and wraps his fingers around his ankle. As he starts to prod against the skin, he winces at the pulsing heat rising up against him. Other than fencing and modeling, Adrien  _ knows  _ he doesn’t have much going for him. His father will be furious if he sees Adrien. 

_ ‘Your body is our image, Adrien. Being reckless like this looks bad not only for you but for the entire family. Do you want to embarrass the entire family?’ _

He hears the click of a yo-yo, and he opens one eye to peek at her. She stares down at the screen, glowering. “C’mon, Chat. Where are you? I can’t do this without you… And now, I guess I need to call Le Paon.”

“I bet he’s coming,” he blurts out.  _ Huh.  _ Who knew Adrien could cover for his own absence so easily? He smiles as the adrenaline starts to wash off him in thick waves. Just from that quick twenty-second duel with Riposte, Adrien starts to droop like a flower that hasn’t seen the sun in years.

He leans his head back against the chimney, exhausted.

-

When he first got the call from Ladybug, he hated the random location. Considering this akuma  _ barely  _ causes any trouble, he assumed they would approach her right away. She seeks out the heroes, Adrien, and Marinette. Otherwise, Riposte appears to follow a certain level of morality. She intends to fight only when needed.

Arriving on the rooftop, Le Paon figures it out. His brother sits against the chimneys, ankle swelling. Judging by the tears starting to fall and the heat pressing into his cheeks, he  _ knows  _ Adrien must be in a lot of pain. Most of the time, he keeps certain emotions under wraps. To let it show this much, in front of his hero… He must be miserable.

He glances up at Le Paon; he buries his face into his hands. The embarrassment crackles off of him, and he can  _ feel  _ it through the air. Judging by the way Ladybug averts her gaze, she feels it too.

At least his ankle will heal quickly. When he transforms, his kwami can mend up fast. Duusu advised him against  _ relying  _ on that, but when push comes to shove, they can speed up the healing process. Otherwise, Adrien will hide this from  _ everyone  _ and pretend he isn’t limping. He chooses to suffer, chooses fencing over his actual wellbeing. And while he knows he can confront him on this, Adrien will get mad before he listens.

Le Paon studies him. “What happened?”

“He saved a civilian, Marinette, from the akuma. I’m sure you noticed Riposte only seeks out two people.” Ladybug nods down at Adrien, but her tone bites into him. He makes a face before rolling his eyes. Of  _ course,  _ Adrien found a way to save the girl who crushes on him hard enough to lie about a fencing victory (though he thinks it came more from a place of inexperience than malice). 

Something bangs behind him, and Le Paon whirls around. A few rooftops away, he spots Riposte starting to bound towards them. As she prowls forward, seeking out Adrien and Ladybug, he lets out a stream of sharp curses.

Le Paon reaches for Ladybug. “We gotta go. Can you carry Adrien?”

“Of course—” 

Adrien lurches to his feet, letting out a sharp gasp as any weight grazes against his ankle. Both of them reach out for him, trying to keep him from injuring his ankle further, but he staggers back against the chimney. With a sharp intake, he stares up at the sky until the tears fade away. “I need to find Felix… My brother. He’s still at the school.”

“Felix?” Ladybug whispers while Le Paon’s heart drops. He repeats the words in his head, and the force of the name rocks over him. Why does Adrien even seek him out? Felix isn’t in any danger, not like he is. And Felix stands right in front of him, as Le Paon, but he can’t say anything. He worries over nothing.

Ladybug recovers first, but their voices clash over each other. “Oh no, I’m sure he’s fine—”

“He can handle himself—”

“You’re the one in danger—”

“You worry too much—”

_ “Please,”  _ Adrien interrupts. His voice shakes with more passion and intensity, driving out the anxiety and fear. “She’s new to the school. She might confuse the two of us. And if she confuses us, then my brother is in danger because  _ I  _ messed up. I  _ need  _ to get to him. He’s at the school, and  _ please. Please.” _

Just as Ladybug almost gives in, a fool for Adrien’s trembling voice, something slashes through the air. The wind ripples outwards and ruffles his feathers. As the chimney starts to fall to the ground, Adrien staggers forward as Le Paon grabs him and leaps  _ away.  _ Ladybug falls in front of him, a defensive position already taken up.

Riposte pauses, taking in the two of them. “Our decisive match isn’t over, Agreste.”

“I’m backing down.” Adrien sniffs, sounding near tears again. “I… Uh, I forfeit. So you won. And you can have your blade back—”

_ “No.”  _ Riposte’s voice grows sharp. As she bounds forward, Ladybug moves to block her path once again. She scowls. “This is not between the two of us, though we will return to it. If you wish for a duel, you can have one. But after I fight with Agreste.”

“He  _ forfeited,”  _ Le Paon spits out.

Riposte takes a step forward; then, she freezes as a purple butterfly flickers over her features. Le Paon grabs his brother harder, and his brother moans in pain. As he backs up, ready to start flying away, Ladybug starts swinging around her yo-yo, its circular path forming a shield in front of them. She manages to speed it up until its blur truly solidifies in front of them. 

Then, the akumatized villain bites down on her lip and shakes her head once, twice. The butterfly light fades away in a sharp snap, and she goes back to a feral smile over them. “I do not care if Hawkmoth’s objective involves the three of you. I would like my decisive match before anything else. And you know how many people are involved in a fencing match? Three. Two opponents and one referee. Unless you’d prefer to ref, I’d suggest you let me duel him.”

Pausing, he lets the words sink in. Did… She just rejects what Hawkmoth said to her? He didn’t know that could occur. He assumed Hawkmoth could take control over all of his akumas no matter their resolve, their purpose. Now, he wants to know—he  _ needs  _ to know what that conversation went like. Perhaps he’ll swing by Katsumi Tsurugi’s place of residence sometime in the future. 

He’ll discuss this with Ladybug and Chat Noir as well. They keep trying to piece together who Hawkmoth might be, but he can tell they don’t expect any answers. Any hypothesis is easily cast aside by how little evidence they have. Riposte is their  _ sixth  _ akuma, and all of them appear to be different in distinct ways.

Maybe he’ll swing by Alya’s place as well. While he dislikes the Ladyblog, dislikes some of the conversation threads started there, he can’t deny she works well as an investigative reporter. She might yield additional information...

“Are you going to let anything else slide?” Adrien asks.

Le Paon pinches him, and he yelps. “Not an option.”

“If it’s—”

“Not an option,” Ladybug calls over the whistling of her yo-yo. Adrien settles back against him, discontented, but Le Paon couldn’t care less. If his brother wants to be a fool and endanger himself further, the two of them are superheroes. Even when he transforms into Chat Noir, he relinquishes his authority to the two of them consistently. Now, he has no choice but to listen to them. 

Riposte cocks her head, and the butterfly reappears. This time, it appears she listens to the words. Then, she nods. “If you do not intend to fight fair, then I will not either. If Adrien refuses to fight him on my terms, by himself, then I will fight him in another way. Where did you say your brother was? The school?”

“No,” Adrien breathes out. He bucks against Le Paon. “Let me fight against her.  _ Please.” _

“No,” Le Paon hisses. Nobody is in school anyway. He abandoned the library table...

_ Shit. Nino. _

-

The Miraculous Team, in addition to putting the akuma alarms in every building possible, convinced the mayor to create an akuma alert for everyone’s phone in Paris. It pings off the cell towers, and if you’re in the right distance, your phone will buzz and insist you find a way to safety.

Alya uses it as a way to track down the akuma. As she flips through the Ladyblog on her way out of school, she tries to find its last known location. At the moment, someone caught a shaky video of her proclaiming her intention to go after Adrien… So she fires off a text message to Adrien, equal parts asking if he’s okay and asking if he knows where the akuma might be. 

As she weaves her way out of the school, refreshing every app in hopes of the next clue, she catches a moving figure in the corner of her vision. Tearing her gaze away from her phone, she reacts too slowly to dodge. Instead, she crashes into Nino, and the mood crashes down around them, the blade of a guillotine coming to kill them. “Oh! Sorry about that… Uh, hello, Nino.”

“Alya,” he says, his voice distant. As he slings his backpack over his shoulders, he makes a point not to look at her. He doesn’t even  _ acknowledge  _ her beyond her name. The moment she realizes that, the words start to worm underneath her skin, fiercer than the jealousy which coursed through her this morning.

She snaps her head away, ready to march down the hallway. She doesn’t have time for stupid, silly boys; the akuma waits for no man, and she needs to answer its call. 

But… This was going to be  _ her  _ stupid, silly boy.

Before she reaches the end of the hallway, she freezes. “I’m sorry, okay? I don’t know why this upset you so much. I had to report on you being the Bubbler, though. I needed to tell the story of Paris… It hasn’t happened here before, never to  _ us.  _ And I’m sorry about your movie. I’m sorry I didn’t edit it, but you  _ said  _ it was okay, and now you’re turning it back around on me. And… I’m sorry.”

“Did you tell a good story?” His footsteps thud up the hallway as he nears her, anger crackling in his tone. “Was there just the right mixture of drama and horror? Did you ruin enough lives to figure out what the right  _ plotline  _ was?”

“You’re not  _ hearing  _ me!” She whirls around to look him in the eye. He can’t suggest  _ she  _ ruined anyone’s life. Someone was always going to report on the akumas. At least this way, she monitors the information better than most news stations. She doesn’t allow the sexualization on her blog; she censored out anyone trying to use real names. Alya can’t fix everything, but she’s trying her damndest, and he should at least  _ realize  _ she’s trying! Nobody  _ cares  _ he was the Bubbler, not like Nino! The public acts like the akumas don’t pose a real danger because the superheroes will catch their fall. Besides, Nino’s superpower was  _ bubbles.  _ Compared to the hell Aurore raised, he shouldn’t be worried!

Alya doesn’t do soft and apologetic; she’s not the kind of person to renounce what she did in afterthought. Alya’s loud, Alya’s in-your-face, and she’s obnoxious and desperate. She blazes like a fire, and fires don’t regret their ashes. And Nino’s a river. He whirls downstream, not resisting the pull of the water, following the flow and becoming something better, smoother, shinier. He lets the water wash over him until he’s smooth and small.

Alya won’t be small. “I  _ didn’t  _ ruin your life. The only one doing that right now is you because you feel  _ so  _ sorry for yourself.”

“Excuse you?” Nino glowers at her as she pushes a hand against his chest.

She nods after she finishes shoving him, briefly satisfied. Then, her anger rushes back. “You keep cowering because of one shitty thing Chloe said. Haven’t you  _ realized  _ that? All Chloe does is spread shit. She called me dumpster trash, and she called Nathaniel an attention who—Nope, not finishing that one. It’s disgusting. But  _ everyone else  _ lets it bounce off of them. Or, at the very least, they don’t dwell on it for so long! Mylene got akumatized  _ after  _ you, and she’s recovered more!”

“So, I’m just being a baby.” 

She… Didn’t want the words to come out that way. But, she doesn’t want to protest against it. “Maybe you are! Yeah, it hurt. And yeah, it stung. But now is the time you get  _ over  _ it. But, instead, I guess it’s too hard to ask that from you. I’m tired of walking on eggshells to make sure you don’t shatter everywhere! It’s not my job to pick up your pieces.”

“You’re right. It’s just your job to break me?” Their voices are too loud for this hallway, too loud for the school. She can’t hear any other noise but the way his voice contorts in anger and despair, mixed too tight to begin to entangle.

She shakes her head. “You’re not listening to me. You  _ never  _ listen to me!”

“Maybe you don’t deserve to be listened to!” He starts to move, but she blocks his path. He retreats back against the lockers, and she stands an inch away from him. Her fists ball at her side, biting into the palms of her hands, leaving crescents where there should be nothing.

He stares at her with his big brown eyes, biting down hard on his bottom lip to keep from shouting again. “So what do you  _ want  _ from me?”

“I don’t want anything from you,” she growls.

Nino glares at her. As he leans forward, breath hot on her face, she can make out the dark galaxies swirling in his eyes. She can see a future, just out of reach, glistening with hope. But his words bite and nip at her face, trying to keep her from getting too close. “You obviously want something from me.”

“Maybe,” she hisses, “I just want you.”

He stares at her. Then, she reaches up, hands ducking beneath his headphones, gripping his shirt collar. His arms snake back to her hips, pulling her higher and closer to him. 

They move at the same time, lips meeting in a clash of fire.

-

_ “Lucky charm!” _

Le Paon and Ladybug alternate who serves as the distraction. For the first time, she regrets not attempting to be the diversion during other akuma fights. Most of the time, Chat slides into that spot without hesitation, without fear. 

The overhang shielding her from view slips down, revealing Riposte again. She manages to send an exasperated look towards Le Paon, who shrugs helplessly. The two of them keep trying to stop her slow movement towards the school. As a result, they abandoned Adrien on some rooftop, making it more difficult to find him. 

Then, the yo-yo sends her lucky charm back at her. She leaps up and catches the spotted sword, rolling to a spot next to Le Paon. If she needs to take her turn again, so be it. Riposte will  _ not  _ be allowed to get Adrien or Felix; considering the akumatized villain stands no chance of finding Marinette, she lacks the same concern Le Paon vibrates with. Even as he tries to be flippant, she knows he wants to make sure all parties are safe. 

She wraps her gloved hand tightly around the hilt, and Le Paon leans in, murmuring. “That’s not how you hold a sabre.”

“Do you want it?” she snaps.

Riposte gives her an analytical look, comparing the sabre to her own sword. “Are you challenging me to a duel? To ensure I do not reach Agreste?”

Running through what Adrien told her, she tries to adjust her positioning. Still, it feels  _ wrong.  _ She shoves the sabre at Le Paon. “If you know so much about it, _ you  _ use it. I’ll use my yo-yo instead.”

“Are you swapping out?” Riposte asks, a hint of amusement edging into her voice. 

Le Paon maneuvers the sword around, trying to get comfortable. Still, he scowls down at it when it fails. He drops his voice to a whisper, almost too low for Ladybug to hear. “How does he make this look so easy?”

“Is this a duel or not?” The villain starts to turn away, back towards the sword.

Ladybug yelps and snatches the hilt of the sword, but Le Paon doesn’t let go. “Wait, no, I—”

“You want a fair fight, right? I’ll duel you!” Chat Noir appears over their shoulders, baton still extended from leaping over them. As he rolls to a stop, he straightens and tosses it at Ladybug. She lets go of the sword, barely managing to catch it before it goes off the roof. Then, Le Paon tosses the sword towards Chat. He catches it easily and swishes his tail to the side, showing a shadowed part of the wall.

Then, he starts to spin the sabre around and tosses it up once. “Fencing tourney, huh? Who knew school could be so interesting?”

“Late, kitty?” She starts to edge towards the shadowed region, and Le Paon follows suit. He pulls out his fan, plucking one of the darts free and nodding towards the akuma. They already discussed, in one of the rare free moments, where they believe the akuma lies. Captured within the sword, they can make out the fragment of a ring. If he can hit it with the dart… The idea finishes blossoming in her mind, and she grins to herself. “Too busy grooming yourself to get here on time?”

He tosses a grin over his shoulder, eyes shining brightly. “Gotta look my best for my special lady.”

“Is this a legitimate challenge?” Riposte asks.

Chat pauses before shrugging. Taking a weird skip step forward, he shifts into a formal bow, something she vaguely remembers from the half-hour of fencing she did today. One foot hovers above the ground, and she takes a second to note his boot looks different…  _ Bulkier.  _ Maybe his kwami wanted to hide a secret there? She’ll ask Tikki if that can happen. “‘Course! Or are you too chicken to fight?  _ Bu-bawk!” _

“Whoever touches first wins, no matter what.” Riposte repeats the greeting, and she slides into position.

“Rules be damned?” Chat jerks a thumb back to Le Paon, who blinks at the whole affair. “And my dear friend, the  _ actual  _ chicken of the group, can  _ Pathfinder  _ the winner. It’ll be fair, Riposte. On my honor!”

_ On his honor? _

For the first time since Riposte started this whole disaster, she doesn’t get to be on the offensive. She doesn’t get the first strike; she won’t be the primary as Adrien said. Instead, Chat Noir pounces forward with his sword outstretched, and he moves without regard to the same foot he kept dangling previously. She watches for a hint of pain, but when none appears, Ladybug chides herself. She’s probably thinking too much of Adrien.

She inches back towards Le Paon, who slinks into the shadows with his dart balanced between his index finger and thumb. “Chat’s in a mood today. What’s up? He seems a little more… Bubbly than usual.”

“He’s always annoyingly bubbly,” Le Paon grits out.

She cocks her head. “Is that  _ concern  _ I hear?”

“All those lectures about teamwork finally paid off, Ladybug. I might find Chat’s euphoria a little troubling, but he always acts happy.”

Ladybug stares at Chat and hums. “You’re right, aren’t you? Besides, I guess we didn’t have much of a choice. The lucky charm wanted him, and he fences a lot better than I could have… Even if this fight might not be legal.”

“It’s a Miraculous hero versus an akumatized villain. I’m shocked you expected any of this to be fair.” Le Paon narrows his eyes as Chat lets out a hoot of laughter, deflecting any shot, and Riposte growls. 

Then, Chat launches over Riposte’s head with a nimble bounce when she tries to back him against the corner. His landing comes sloppily, and he shakes the tiles of the roof. As he rolls to the edge, he perks up with a huge smile, a dazed look in his eyes. Then, he bounces back to his feet with his sword pointed back at her.

Ladybug winces in sympathy even though he doesn’t take a second to recover. “That doesn’t seem right.”

“Maybe we just need to cut back on his sugar intake,” drawls Le Paon.

She swats at him, but he ducks out of her range. “And here I thought you were concerned about him. Are you monitoring his  _ diet  _ now?”

“Someone needs to,” he argues.

“He’s saving our asses right now,” she replies almost absently. “I don’t think I can bounce back as fast as Chat, but I don’t know about your capability… I guess Miraculous Ladybug heals everything.”

“And that’s why you don’t need to bounce back as fast. You’ll always be the one we need to prioritize.” Something bitter inches in Le Paon’s voice.

She goes to argue before hesitating. Tikki  _ did  _ say they would always need to purify the akuma; otherwise, the problem would multiply, quite literally. While she wants to think they all prioritize each other, maybe Le Paon and Chat  _ do  _ take risks to make sure she never gets injured. If so… It makes her grimace, and her stomach tosses at the idea. She doesn’t think she’s better than either of them; why don’t they have an ability to purify the akumas? Why does Hawkmoth get to be so powerful in comparison to them?

He nudges her. “Don’t look so upset. You had to have realized that already.”

“Chat’s saving our ass right now,” she replies weakly. “I know I wouldn’t be able to do that.”

“I know that too.” Le Paon surges forward and drops to one knee. Chat lets out a squawk as he missteps, crashing to the edge of the roof to avoid a swipe of the blade. As he flings the dart forward, Riposte manages to cut Chat’s cheek, leaving a bloody streak. Then, the dart hits her finger and releases the butterfly the next second. 

Chat perks up as it floats away, and Le Paon grins smugly. “Ass-saving, though, is a two-person job.”

-

She waits for her mother outside the same school she attacked, trying to focus on the blurring screen of her phone. Shame starts to creep up her neck again, attacking her ears until they glow red with embarrassment. Her mom and dad will never speak to her again. Only one day in Paris, and she already succumbed to the supervillain. While Kagami prides herself on being composed, on being above the same emotions which entrance others her age, she fell prey much sooner than any of them.

As the remainder of the fencing team disperses, all of them give her a wide berth. On those steps, she can watch as their legs go around her, their footsteps speed up to guarantee they will not get attacked. She wonders if Riposte still shows on her features; could the supervillain leave a greater effect on her than previously thought?

Kagami twists her ring; her mom gifted it to her on her thirteenth birthday, celebrating their family in a subtle way. She believes in her family above all else. That was why she feared to disappoint her mother. Now, though, that fear gives way to resignation. She will receive a conversation about her actions one way or another, but now it will become a laundry list of what she failed in today.

Then, someone clears their throat.

She glances up to see the model offering his hand, a quiet olive branch. A quiet prayer. Everyone else continues to cower, but now, they begin to whisper at the strange interaction. He changed out of his fencing gear, and she cannot find any trace of an incoming fight on his features. He offers her another chance even if she would not do the same for herself.

From behind his back, he reveals the hilt of her sword. “I think we got off on the wrong foot. So… Let’s restart. Hi. I’m Adrien Agreste.”

She debates ignoring him, letting him disappear into her periphery. Then, she takes the hand still offered to her, and she ignores the hilt of her sword. “Kagami Tsurugi. I am sorry about this—”

“Sorry? Why?” He cocks his head, and he reminds her of a puppy at that moment. When he senses the change of mood, he wiggles his eyebrows to try and worm a laugh out of her. “You’re a complete stranger, remember?”

“You cannot just press a ‘restart’ button in life,” she protests. Actions should have consequences. To pretend anything else would be immoral. Then, people would begin to try and get away with more; then, Adrien would find himself being tricked by those he considers a friend again and again.

He shrugs. “I want to, though. And I know you want to. Let’s press the button together.”

Kagami starts to protest again when he drags the sword forward. He gestures with the hilt, waiting for her to take it. When she wraps her hand around it, he drops it as if it burns and grins. “You won, Adrien.”

“I didn’t win anything… We never dueled.” He winks at her, and it sets her over the edge. She rewards him with a smile she cannot help, and he claps in excitement. “There we go! I’m not taking no for an answer, and people have told me I’m very stubborn. So, we can have a decisive match in the future. Otherwise, I refuse to count that one.”

“I can see why people consider you persistent,” she finally says.

Adrien nods. “Yup!”

Her mother’s red car pulls up on the curb of the school, and she sighs. Before she can get up, Adrien offers a hand to help her. Bowing her head to show her thanks, she starts to duck around him. Beyond this moment, beyond this overwhelming joy at being accepted, at being  _ one  _ with someone, at connecting so fast, she needs to return home and face real consequences. While Adrien may forgive her, she doubts everyone else will have the same attitude. 

Kagami refuses to use social media, but she explored the so-called ‘Ladyblog’ en route to Paris. They treat akumatized victims with a wide range of reactions; they may refer to them as victims, but the commenters act as victims themselves. 

“Wait!”

She turns in time to see Adrien hopping and limping after her. A distant memory eats at her, reminding her of Adrien diving into the bushes and emerging with a pained expression. “Was that my fault?”

“What?  _ No way!”  _ As he shakes his head, he maintains that wide smile. With that, he could fix many of this world’s issues. She finds it hard to believe someone could be that happy, but she finds it harder to believe he intends to deceive with that grin. “It’s the newest style. Why strut your stuff when you can hobble?”

“You’re nothing like your father.”

His smile falters. “Is that a compliment or insult?”

“Take it whichever way you would like.” Perhaps it is unfair to judge him against Gabriel Agreste. She never met the man, but the few stories she heard paint him in a negative light. That might matter more than anything else.

He hops back and nods. “Okay, I just wanted to tell you… I’m a new kid too. I didn’t really do school before this year. So, if you want a tour or anything, I can show you all the spots to hide out. The library, the band room… I know it’s overwhelming to have all those eyes, tracking you.”

“I would like that tour,” she says as she slips into her car. Then, she rolls down the window again, a mockery of their old interaction. “And I would like that duel as well.”

“I’d love nothing more!”

And she watches as someone she might consider a friend disappears into the distance.

-

Out of all the staff, the Gorilla might be his favorite. Adrien fell asleep on the drive home, and Felix returned home sometime  _ during  _ the akuma attack. Usually, it meant the Gorilla would drive back to the manor and shake Adrien’s shoulder gently. Instead, he took a longer route home and swung by the grocery store. When he woke up to his kind eyes, the Gorilla offered him an ankle brace before going back to a passive expression. 

He almost started crying as he slipped it onto his ankle, but he couldn’t tell if it was out of gratitude or pain.

When they arrived, Adrien fled to his room. For the first time, he enjoyed his father’s distance. If he prodded about fencing practice, the secret would slip out. Then, he would face his crushing disappointment. Then, he would face the ruination of his name and his career, and even if he planned to let Plagg heal it up as quickly as possible, he could never shake that particular sensation… That he let down everyone he knew.

Now, he lies in bed, comforter pulled over his head, watching YouTube with Plagg. If he watches outside of this cocoon, the weight of Felix’s gaze settles on him  _ directly.  _ And Felix keeps gawking at him like some kind of… Dying animal. Adrien never knows how to hide anything from him; he  _ always  _ gives away his secrets to his twin brother. While he knows twin telepathy doesn’t exist, his brother understands minuscule details better than he should.

And if he watches outside his cocoon, he might end up making eye contact with Felix. Then, he’d break down crying because he’s been a mess  _ all day.  _ He made a fool of himself in front of Ladybug after getting Felix in trouble  _ twice  _ (once by causing the akuma, once by telling her where to hurt him most). He embarrassed a girl new to town by letting someone who barely understood fencing call the fate of a decisive match. He put Marinette in an  _ awful  _ position. Every time he leaves this room, he takes a wrecking ball to his life… Maybe he never should’ve left the house.

“Adrien…” Felix calls after a long silence.

Plagg gives him a look and pauses the video on Ladybug. “Answer him.”

“I don’t want to,” he mumbles. Still, he brushes Plagg farther back into the blanket and pulls it off his head. If he argues with Plagg, it’ll cause more problems. “What, Fe?”

“I saw you limping when we got home. Why didn’t Ladybug’s charm heal your ankle?” he asks gently. Felix rarely makes that tone of voice, but he’s trying for Adrien. Somehow, it tightens the stone in his gut, and Adrien digs his fingers into the comforter until it stings. When his twin brother takes a deep breath and crosses the room, settling down on the end of the bed, Adrien glances back at the unmoving phone screen.

After the oppressive,  _ strangling  _ silence, Adrien huffs. “Why do you think?”

“Didn’t you get injured during the akuma attack?” Felix picks his words carefully. It irritates the hell out of Adrien. Why can’t he just  _ speak  _ to him? They’re twins! Aren’t they supposed to share everything? But, Felix trudges along with this script, and it takes away some of the honesty, some of the genuineness. 

Felix reminds Adrien of their father, and he  _ hates  _ it. Adrien doubts he reminds anyone of his father; Kagami saw it, and she’s been in town for a day. In the one place he should belong, he grows farther and farther away from his family. But he doesn’t belong with his friends either, so what does that make Adrien?

Scowling, Adrien tries to take a deep breath to calm his nerves. Instead, the fire flocks to every corner of his body. “Not from the akuma. I didn’t get injured from the akuma. I did it to myself. I was stupid and clumsy, just like you and Father always say I’m going to be, so I ended up with the injury. Are you proud, Fe? Look, you’re right. I never should’ve left the house. I should’ve appreciated what I had and stayed here without causing problems for everyone because I’m too… Because I’m  _ reckless.” _

“Adrien—”

“Just go,” he mutters. When Felix’s presence doesn’t waver, he scoots away from his twin and glares. “I mean it. Just go.”

Felix studies him for a few seconds. Then, he nods, grabs his bookbag, and leaves the room. Adrien holds his breath, hearing his footsteps disappear down the hallway. If Felix knows about his ankle, he’ll go to Nathalie. And Nathalie will go to their father. And then, he’ll get cut from the team the same day he joined… But maybe that’s a good thing. Kagami deserves it more than he does.

“You okay, kid?” Plagg asks after a second, flitting out of the blankets.

Adrien groans, powers off his phone, and faceplants into his pillow. “I’m bad at this. I’m  _ significantly  _ worse at this than LB and LP.”

“Kid—”

“No, think about it!” He twists to watch Plagg out of the corner of his vision. The kwami flutters near his shoulder before opting to go back into his hair, trying to purr him into happiness. It’s Plagg’s go-to move. 

Adrien reaches up and musses his hair, knocking Plagg out of it. He keeps pulling and rearranging until his shadow looks like Chat Noir. People like Chat Noir; well,  _ some  _ people do. They like him more than Adrien Agreste; Adrien likes him more than Adrien. “I couldn’t save Felix. I just put him into more danger. And what’s the point then? We’re meant to be  _ heroes.  _ And heroes aren’t meant to screw up. I can’t even help the ones I love, Plagg. I’m just… I’m so helpless all the time. And Ladybug and Le Paon know what they’re doing, and everything they do makes sense. They’re not being reckless and stupid and a thrillseeker, and… They don’t even  _ need  _ Chat. What did I even do today besides get in the way?”

“That’s not true. You’re the best fencer.” Plagg swats at him, licking his paw to smoothing his hair back down. “C’mon, kid. Let’s get some food. It’ll cheer you up… You don’t eat enough as is.”

“Go ahead. You know where the safe is.” Adrien goes back to trying to smother himself with the pillow. He pulls the blankets up until it blocks out the light, and he pretends his breaths don’t start coming out as hiccuped sobs. 

Plagg goes back into Adrien’s blond hair, purring over the sobs. When he tries to move him, Plagg bites his finger. 

Adrien’s  _ drowning. _

_ - _

_ While Duusu remained a voice in the back of his Wielders’ head, they didn’t think about him when they transformed. They became one in that form. He considered it the ultimate give-and-take, but he gave everything. They wanted to be superheroes, and he wanted a way to actually fix the universe. The kwamis tried once to intervene directly; it led to more ruination, more destruction, more problems. _

_ Yet, some rules stayed the same. Within the transformation, Duusu saw with their eyes, heard with their ears, felt with their hands. He relinquished control of all of their features, and he enhanced their abilities, but he got the experience nonetheless. With a direct hand in their body’s chemistry, he could manipulate healing as well. _

_ But their bodies rejected him if they died. He couldn’t resurrect the dead. Once, he whispered that in Katsumi’s ear, when the ancient evil knocked aside her best friend. As long as she stayed transformed, Katsumi didn’t need to worry. Her kwami could keep her alive or, at least, suspend her in stasis.  _

_ Sometimes, their Wielders still slipped through the gaps and still died despite their best interests… But he didn’t tell Katsumi that. _

_ But as the ancient evil reached out, knocking her aside, he  _ felt  _ the crack of her skull, and he felt the panic start to well up inside him. Her consciousness slipped away before he can grab at it, force it back into her, and he felt life starting to drain out of her. _

_ As she crumpled against the wall, Inari turned and let out a screech. She rushed over, and something pulsed in the air. He realized, distantly, Trixx pulled on their connection, reaching for him. _

_ He was too busy. _

_ Unlike Tikki and Plagg, Duusu didn’t need to build his Wielder back up. Most of the time, his peachicks stayed out of direct battles. They provided direction, they fought long-distance, they made sure nobody could hurt him. He never wanted to be the one with the biggest weapon in the room; let the others duke it out. He could walk away with his best friend, his Wielders, still intact and be content. _

_ Hera was  _ different  _ though. _

_ She wanted to fight, she wanted to give it her all. Who was he to stop her? _

_ But now, as he strained to keep her alive, he realized he wanted to revert to his old ways. He wanted to fly back into the box and close the lid. When Wayzz tried to convince him to come out, convince him to fight against the ancient evil, Duusu would… Would… Bite him. Scare him away. Why didn’t Fu ever risk his life?  _

_ Why didn’t anyone tell him this would grow so dark? Why didn’t anyone tell him how serious this was? He thought… He was excited to watch TV shows with Katsumi. He was excited to read books over her shoulders. He wanted to coach her through what to wear on dates, wanted to convince her to get that with the uprising activist she seemed to oppose on a personal level. _

_ Nobody told him this ancient evil spanned far beyond the heroes themselves. _

_ But then, as he patched Katsumi back up, trying to hold her together before she slipped away, he saw through her slitted eyes as her consciousness started to return in wispy strands.  _

_ And he saw the Black Cat activate her powers, and the world grew dark once more. _

**Author's Note:**

> pls leave comments/kudos if you enjoyed reading this! Anything would make my day: live-commenting or just saying "that was cool!"
> 
> PREVIEW
> 
> "I think it has helped but-"  
> "Exactly, Adrien agrees with me. You're just being ungrateful."  
> "I don't think-"  
> "Well, Adrien is not me!"  
> "Fe-"


End file.
